So I noticed my good friend and mentor Georgia was posting about an old friend at Masterson the other day named Cody. I read her facebook status and remembered what fun my little sister, Annie and I had when we worked out there as kids and then I remembered about a time when Annie decided Cody was the only horse she would ride. As with all of my stories this one involves me and my little sister in our usual quarrels.
For those of you who don't know Cody he's a mustang. His "mustangedness" is what makes him so cool. When Dakota akaCody came to us at Masterson he was this cute little black mustang with the classic freezebrand up the neck and a kind eye, but was terrified of his own shadow. He is coal black and has a little white star and stripe going down his face. He has been a staple of the Masterson Station Equine Program for years on end now.
Annie instantly loved Cody when he came. He was short like her and a bit timid (read scared of his own shadow) and he wanted to please. At the time (though I guess still) I was a bit wild when I rode and decided to get us both into beacoup amounts of trouble. We would go ride in the lessons and help teach lessons and sometimes we would take Cody and Duncan (my old horse) out on trail rides around the park. My favorite thing to do to poor Annie was to be walking along and all of a sudden scream, "gallop!!!" and take off. Inevitably Cody would spook, Annie would fall off and then Cody would do one of two things. He would either run as fast as he could away like someone stung him in the rump with a hot iron, tail over his head and snorting all the way or he would stand there and stare at her with a wild eyed look trying to figure out if he should run, but really wanting to be close to the human he loved. I would come trotting back laughing like a hyena to make sure she was okay and usually get screamed at. It was always, " That’s not fair! I'm going home! I HATE it when you do that!", to which I would reply that I was just trying to get her to race, why couldn't she just get him to gallop when I did!
Next was water crossing. Cody wanted us to know he was never meant to be a wild horse roaming the plains, he really did like his little drylot (being a mustang he felt the need to gorge himself at any chance in the event of imminent bad weather...in July...in Kentucky...damn frost might be here tomorrow and Cody knew frost meant no grass) where there was accessible drinking water and he could see the coyotes/wolves/bears/snakes that might approach from any direction. Cody did not feel any need to cross water, no matter what might be chasing or leaving him. He was the best spin and bolter I have ever met, however Annie was the polar opposite to Cody. He spun and she fell off, there was no “sticky” in her style.
Even better was on the way home at the end of the day we were always lazy and tired. No one wanted to dismount to open and shut the gate into the yard. Duncan was the quiet, easy to maneuver horse so I always volunteered to do the gate (that and I knew the following outcome every time and my evil nature made me want to see it over and over). Now Cody was no stranger to my ways and anticipated the gate every time. Duncan and I would push the gate open and then go to the other side. Cody and Annie would come through and at juuust the right time I’d swing the gate…It would touch Cody’s rump and he would scoot through at Mach 3000 inevitably unseating Annie who would 9 out of 10 times “say hello to the dirt.” He would then trot on up the little hill and stand himself by his gate patiently waiting to be turned out- tack and all.
I wish I could say this got old, but it never did. Cody was as reliable for a spook as I am to be on time to work. And to this day I still think Cody in his old age would probably remember our rides and might still give Annie a run for her money.
All in all every single “grounding” I got for my little escapades was totally worth it. It never failed to make one of us laugh (and sometimes both) and it taught us a valuable lesson…Cody’s spook at two things…things that move aaannnd things that don’t.
Signing off~
Mandy
Even better was on the way home at the end of the day we were always lazy and tired. No one wanted to dismount to open and shut the gate into the yard. Duncan was the quiet, easy to maneuver horse so I always volunteered to do the gate (that and I knew the following outcome every time and my evil nature made me want to see it over and over). Now Cody was no stranger to my ways and anticipated the gate every time. Duncan and I would push the gate open and then go to the other side. Cody and Annie would come through and at juuust the right time I’d swing the gate…It would touch Cody’s rump and he would scoot through at Mach 3000 inevitably unseating Annie who would 9 out of 10 times “say hello to the dirt.” He would then trot on up the little hill and stand himself by his gate patiently waiting to be turned out- tack and all.
I wish I could say this got old, but it never did. Cody was as reliable for a spook as I am to be on time to work. And to this day I still think Cody in his old age would probably remember our rides and might still give Annie a run for her money.
All in all every single “grounding” I got for my little escapades was totally worth it. It never failed to make one of us laugh (and sometimes both) and it taught us a valuable lesson…Cody’s spook at two things…things that move aaannnd things that don’t.
Signing off~
Mandy
